The phantom pain, his missing finger, faded to the background as he clung to the ledge. The flares of heat washed over him as the lava boiled below, but even that he barely noticed. He knew he was closer to death than he had been at any point on the quest, and he didn’t care. Frodo had long ago accepted that his fate was tied to the ring.
The fingers from his good hand slipped as his weight and fatigue worked to free him from his life and pain. The bed of flames waited to receive him. They had already welcomed his ring brother, Smeagol. Gollum’s fate had also been tied to the ring, while the creature may have been too far gone to realize it, Frodo knew. Gandalf had known it too.
Unable to control himself, Frodo peered into the swirling mass of yellow and orange death and easily spotted the ring. It called to him still. He desperately wanted to answer that call, but he could hear Sam, faintly, calling for him, telling him to hold on. His friend’s voice, his faithful friend, Sam The Brave, was too far away though. It wasn’t powerful enough to lend any strength to Frodo’s tired mind and body. His blood shot eyes, strained from the heat, the miles, the grief, watched the ring float on the surface of the lava.
It could still be his…
Sam’s voice was more urgent, more forceful, demanding attention, and Frodo could no longer ignore it. He swung his eyes away from the ring and saw his companion reaching out for him. Knowing it wouldn’t work he reached back with his broken hand. There was no hope, though. Death was his only option.
But, somehow, Sam hauled him from the edge, even as the ring slipped below the surface, destroyed, even as it had been created, in the fires of Mt. Doom. Relief flooded through Frodo. Relief and a great sadness. How had he managed to escape his fate, to break the pull of the ring when Gollum hadn’t? When Smeagol hadn’t?
He looked to Sam and knew the answer. Where Smeagol had been cast out and forced to wander alone, cursed, Frodo had never lost the love and support of his friends. He was sorry he hadn’t done more to befriend the creature. As much as he had done, it hadn’t been enough. If he had been nicer, if he had tried to understand more, if he had treated Gollum as an equal, perhaps Smeagol would have survived, in the end, too.
Tears coursed down the hobbits dirty cheeks. The sweltering heat caused them to evaporate before they’d even reached the cave floor. His grief could not disappear to easily. It would stay with him for the rest of his days.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
So, yesterday, when I posted my slightly different perspective of the end of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Trent asked if I could write in a “little bit of sorrow for the poor chap?”
I said I could.
How’d I do? And, what do you think? Does Gollum deserve a bit of sorrow, or did he get what he deserved?
I think I have always felt bad for Gollum…but we all know I don’t know the full story so I can’t really defend that POV other than “just because”.
Just because is good enough for me most of the time. And, why don’t you know the full story? You should get on that!
I have not read or watched any of the LOTR related media. I keep meaning to, but…nada.
*mouth drops to the floor*
You haven’t even watched the movies?
They are fantastic!!!
I think given enough stressors, anyone could end up like Smeagol/Gollum. The fun loving, passive traits overrun by the cruel, live at all costs personality if the stakes are high enough. That’s why I do have quite a bit of empathy for the pitiful creature. He was seduced, then cast out. No wonder he became wretched. This was very well done. You have given him a sympathetic rendering. Oh, and breakfast is almost ready. 😛
Almost ready? What’s taking so long? I could have eaten like three times in the intervening time! 😛
And, I agree – I think we all have the potential to fall if we the circumstances are just right. That’s perhaps why we adore heroes so much, why we put them on pedastals and never want to see them fall, because we want to know it is possible to be perfect, to beat all the odds, to never let anyone, including ourselves, down.
I think you’re right. The idea of the hero has been with human culture for a very long time. We want to have someone to look up to, to emulate. Unfortunately, we forget they are human too, and can succumb to failings. Frodo perservered, and maintained his Hobbit humanity, but the struggle left its mark so that he was no longer the easy going young man he used to be.
How dare we be human! How dare we be frail and fallible!
I actually enjoy a little too much my failings. It’s just so darned much fun. 😀
All part of the adventure. And that’s the best attitude any of us can have.
Yes!!!
Great exploration of those final moments!
Thank you!
And they lived happily ever after.
Sam and Frodo?
Yup.
Happily? Yes. Ever after? Not so much, sadly.
Well, it’s a relative term, I think.
Good point. Well, okay, shall we start over?
Yes, they lived happily ever after.
I KNOW!
I know you know. You said it in the first place.
Sheesh.
Wait. Somehow the tables were turned on me…
Hello, Jester… turning tables is one of my specialties.
I think.
You shall rue this…
I rue most things.
I also drive a Ru. So, it’s the story of my life.
Ru?
(suba)Ru
I thought of that after I replied… D’oh!
I hate it when that happens. I’ll give you full credit anyway.
Woohoo!!
Exactly.
He deserved some sorrow I believe. Well done. As I was reading it, I thought,”Haven’t I heard this story before?” lol
Hahaha
Why, yes, yes you had heard it before. 😛
lol so it wasn’t de je vu
definitely de ja view
Ha!
That’s what I’m here for.
why thank you!
why you’re welcome!
Oh now we need you to create a whole different ending to Shawshank…lol
Um….
Like a whole different ending for real? Or, just give the perspective from someone else’s point of view?
Ohhh both sound good actually!
Um….
Okay. I’ll see what I can do.
It’s going to be so umm..what’s that new word to replace awesomesaucenesseh? again?
I’m trying out superbgravy this week (Twindaddy came up with that one).
Well then it’s going to be superbgravy!!
It’s going to be great, drizzled with superbgravy.
nom nom
Exactly!
Loved it. Nailed it. I was thinking about this today, my brain went to a place where Frodo feels the sorrow as he lets Gollum fall… calling him Gollum at first, and then his real name as he sees the poor chap tumble to his demise. But I like your way better, Matticus. Thanks for showing the unfortunate guy some compassion, and for humouring me.
Was happy to do so. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
I thought we were supposed to feel bad for Gollum all along? I mean, even Gandalf feared being corrupted by the ring. What chance did Gollum have?
I think we were showed compassion and pity in the earlier movies, but by the end they had convinved us he was nothing but evil intent and didn’t deserve more than our contempt… They had to create a divide between him and Frodo so that we could believe that Frodo could go on without the ring….
I interpreted it differently, but I guess that’s part of the appeal of the story.
I think that’s more the beauty of being human – how we can all view the same thing and interpret it differently – because we are all different.
Until the Borg assimilates us all.
Well, yeah… But, that’s still a long way off.
A bit of both, really. He could have been a good man, if not for the ring, and he was never really happy.
Never happy? What a sad fate….
Love what you have done here.
Thank you.
Quite moving. And I never really thought about Frodo feeling guilty about Gollum before, but it makes perfect sense.
I blame Trent. I’m not sure I would have thought about it like that either, if he hadn’t brought it up.